At the 13th PSOE Congress in Mérida, on Sunday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced new measures during his speech. The government will adopt these on Tuesday at the Congress of Ministers. The new measures concern both housing and support for ‘the most vulnerable households’.
Sánchez stressed that the first housing law in the history of Spanish democracy will be approved. The new law prohibits the sale of social housing to speculative investment funds. Also, 100,000 new homes will be built in the coming years. Of these, 30% – approximately 30,000 houses – will be rented to young people, so that they can live independently earlier.
The aim of these measures is to stop seeing housing as the problem it is for many households, and to make it a real right for all citizens, Sánchez said. He emphasised that housing would thus become the fifth pillar of the welfare state. During his fifth visit to the island of La Palma on Saturday, Sánchez also announced, that economic aid to the affected population and municipalities would be brought forward.
100 million extra for vulnerable households
Sánchez further reported that on October 26, the Spanish Council of Ministers will approve a Royal Decree. This will make an additional €100 million available to support the 1.2 million vulnerable households in trouble due to the increase in electricity prices as winter approaches.
This decree is also expected to help industries and businesses protect their customers from rising energy prices, promote transparency and thus build in a check in the establishment of electricity tariffs. The government will do what it has to do, Sánchez said. He assured that the government respects the European timetable for taking the measures. However, this Royal Decree provides accelerated protection for consumers, industry, and businesses and promotes transparency.
